How do you choose between tap water, bottled water and mineral water?

Tap water, bottled water and mineral water do not sit in the same frame. The İnsani Tüketim Amaçlı Sular Hakkında Yönetmelik (the Turkish regulation on water intended for human consumption) covers spring waters, drinking waters and the drinking and utility water that comes from the mains together; natural mineral waters it leaves outside its scope. So the first three are measured against the same set of parameters, and the fourth is the subject of a separate regulation.

Below we look at the definition of the three kinds of water, where the standard is checked, what the label says, why mineral water stands apart, and what the choice is made on.

What spring water means

The regulation defines spring water as groundwater that forms naturally within geologically suitable formations, emerges at the surface of its own accord from one or more outlets or is drawn out by technical means, and is labeled and packaged for sale without being subjected to any process other than those permitted.

The key phrase here is “without being subjected to any process other than those permitted”. With spring water the field for intervention is narrow.

Where drinking water differs

Drinking water is groundwater sold in packaging too; but its definition diverges on the processing side. Disinfection, filtration, sedimentation, purification and similar processes approved by the Ministry may be applied, and the parameter values are brought to the values in the annex by being lowered or raised.

So both are sold in bottles and both meet the same parameters; where they differ is in how those values were reached.

The water that comes from the tap

The third definition is drinking and utility water: water that, whatever its origin, is supplied either in its original state or treated, from either its source or the distribution network, meets the parameter values in the annex and is not offered for commercial sale. Water that comes from the tap falls under this definition.

The regulation also defines an exception for it: independent sources supplying less than 10 cubic meters a day on average, or used by fewer than 50 people, are outside the scope unless they are supplied for a commercial or public activity.

Where the standard is checked

Here is the real difference. The parameters are checked, if the water is supplied through a mains network, at the building or an establishment, at the point where the water is drawn from the taps; if it is taken from a tanker, at the point it is taken from the tanker; and if it is filled into bottles for sale, at the point it is filled into the bottles.

So mains water is measured at your tap and packaged water at the filling plant. The same article also defines the obligation of the competent authorities to take corrective measures and to inform property owners in cases where the non-compliance arises from the internal network of the building or from maintenance and repair.

What the label says

The label of packaged water carries the name of the water, its type, the address of the place it was bottled, the date and number of the permit issued by the Ministry, the warnings the Ministry deems appropriate, the processes applied under the permit and the parameters the water holds. The chemical parameters sit on the label background in a legible form.

The color carries information too: the label background is blue and its shades for natural spring waters and brown and its shades for drinking waters. The width of the band and the font size are defined by package size as well.

The process applied cannot be hidden. Where reverse osmosis, filtration and similar processes are used for drinking waters, and where separation using ozone-enriched air is carried out for spring waters, it is compulsory for this to be stated on the label.

How mains water is monitored

The regulation gives the competent authorities the duty of providing consumers with sufficient and up-to-date information about drinking and utility water, and requires a report on the quality of the water to be published every three years.

The scope of the report is defined too: it contains at minimum information about all independent water sources supplying more than a thousand cubic meters a day on average or serving more than five thousand people. Information about the water where you live can rest on a published document rather than on guesswork.

Why mineral water is separate

Natural mineral waters are outside the scope of this regulation; so are thermal spring and drinking cure waters and waters for medical purposes. That is why mineral water is not assessed in the same category as the three above.

On the nutrition side, the guideline defines mineral water as a drink that naturally contains electrolytes such as calcium, magnesium, sodium and potassium along with gas. It asks everyone to pay attention to the arsenic content, people with hypertension to the sodium content, and for the label information to be examined; it writes that mineral waters with added sugar should not be preferred.

What the choice is made on

On the nutrition side the frame is plain: the guideline asks for the need for fluid to be met primarily with water and puts water at the top of the daily drinks plan with 1.5 liters. It sets no ranking among kinds of water.

What is left is a few measurable questions: what type of water does the label say it is, is a process applied stated, are the permit date and number there, are the parameters legible. For mains water the question is the report published by the local authority.

None of these questions points to a brand. The decision is made with the information sitting on the product’s label and in a published document.

In short: the three kinds of water are measured against the same set of parameters but the point of measurement and who is responsible differ; the label states the type of water, the permit information, the process applied and the parameters; mineral water is a separate item. We covered the short comparison in this tip, the question of amount in this guide and the whole picture in the water and drinks guide.